Fatal Metro Transit Bus Crash: Car Driver Arrested

SAINT PAUL, MN — Saint Paul police say the driver of a car that ran stop sign and struck bus, killing one passenger and critically injuring another, has been identified as Tyler Randall Bjelland, 26. Bjelland was arrested on suspicion of criminal vehicular homicide after showing "preliminary signs of impairment," police said on Twitter.

Saint Paul police officers responded to a fatal crash Saturday night at the intersection of Dale Street and Charles Avenue involving a Metro Transit bus.

The crash occurred at about 7:30 p.m. when a car driven at a high rate of speed by a 26-year-old Minneapolis man ran a stop sign, struck a median, went airborne and went through a Metro Transit bus, according to police.

There were between six and eight people on the bus at the time of the crash, including a 48-year-old male who was ejected and died at the scene. He has been identified as Kenneth J. Foster of Minneapolis.

A 19-year-old male passenger was also injured; he is still at Regions Hospital in critical condition.

(For more local news, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from Minnesota Patch, click here to find your local Minnesota Patch. Also, follow us on Facebook, and if you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

The driver of the car that struck the vehicle was also transported to Regions and is in critical condition. Investigators are working to determine whether drugs or alcohol played a role in the crash.

"Our thoughts are with everyone involved--the victims, their families, the bus driver and the other passengers, responding officers, Saint Paul Fire medics and others who witnessed the horrific incident," police said in a statement Friday.

Images via Saint Paul Police Department